2021 R10 Special Recognition to SAC Volunteers
Chamika Sudusinghe is a final year undergraduate from the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka. He has been an active IEEE volunteer since 2018 and was part of the many projects organized at the Student Branch, Section, and Regional levels. Currently, Chamika is serving as the Secretary of the IEEE Region 10 Student Activities Committee.
Chamika commenced his IEEE volunteering journey with the IEEE University of Moratuwa Student Branch (SB), one of the most active Student Branches within Sri Lanka Section. He contributed to multiple projects as a volunteer, including IEEEXtreme & IEEE Day, and has served as the webmaster for the SB for almost two years, since 2019. The SB secured several awards and accomplishments both globally and locally during his term in the executive committee. Chamika considers his contribution towards organizing MoraXtreme as one of his significant achievements. As a volunteer leader in the SB, he worked with more than 50 volunteers to organize MoraXtreme 4.0, a coding competition to provide adequate practice for students in getting ready for IEEEXtreme. During Chamika’s term as the Chairperson, the organizing committee of MoraXtreme launched it as an all-island competition for the very first time. It paved the way for more than 1000 students in the Sri Lankan university community to get ready for IEEE Xtreme, making it one of the largest coding competitions in Sri Lanka.
As an IEEE student member, Chamika has participated in multiple events organized in the Section since 2018. IEEE Techno Meetup, which focused on emerging technologies, was one of his earliest events. In 2018, he joined the IEEE Sri Lanka Section Congress, which is the flagship event of the Section, as a delegate. It was a turning point for him, as he got exposed to the bulk of the Sri Lankan IEEE volunteering community there. In addition, the Sri Lanka Section Congress sparked interest in him to step into volunteering for projects at the Section. Chamika then served as the Secretary of IEEE SLInspire, which envisioned providing equal access to quality education to all student communities in Sri Lanka. Back then, the project was in its inceptive year, primarily focusing on a school seminar series and research collaborations. Since then, IEEE SLInspire went on a long journey, widening its scope as years flew by. In 2019, Chamika became the Secretary of IEEE Techno Meetup, in which he was able to manifest his skills as a volunteer leader. This was a significant step in his voyage to become the Section Student Representative of IEEE Sri Lanka Section.
Chamika has made significant contributions in streamlining the student activities of the IEEE Sri Lanka Section. During his stint as the Section Student Representative (SSR) of Sri Lanka, the Section witnessed the introduction of a new committee structure for the Student Activities Committee (SAC). This new strategy contributed to increasing the number of volunteers getting opportunities at the national level and increasing efficiency, thus enhancing the volunteer experience and project impact. He was instrumental in initiating the event “IEEE Boost 2020”, which continued its success in the following year as an important event focusing on membership drives and leadership training. Together with the Awards & Recognition Subcommittee of the SAC, he contributed to introducing a recognition program for the Student Branches to encourage them to apply for global awards and recognitions.
Chamika has served as the Vice-Chair for Publicity in IEEE PES Global Student Congress 2020 and was one of the main contributors to ensuring the success of this global student event. He operated in an involuted environment, with a team of volunteers from 4 different continents. With his drive to promote the event and ensure proper representation on all platforms, Chamika was truly an asset to the IEEE PES Global Student Congress 2020. Recently, he served as an organizing committee member of regional events by IEEE Region 10 Young Professionals: Sparklers Summit & Career and Leadership Aid Program (CLAP).
In 2020, Chamika became the first Sri Lankan student to win the Richard E. Merwin Scholarship Award. In addition, he became the first Sri Lankan to win the Upsilon Pi Epsilon Honor Society Award. In 2021, Chamika won the Section Outstanding Student Volunteer Award. Over the last few years, his achievements have motivated and inspired many students to come forward as volunteers. Since his school days, Chamika showed his leadership skills and commitment to implementing activities for the betterment of the community. Before joining IEEE, he volunteered for multiple organizations, including AIESEC of the University of Moratuwa and the Entrepreneurship Society of the University of Moratuwa. During the past few years, Chamika moved towards IEEE because he considers IEEE as the place that exposed him to a diverse set of initiatives which gave him ample opportunities to utilize his skills and learn and improve what he lacked. As a volunteer, he had many opportunities to experiment and contribute to making a difference in his local community. He believes that the experience one gains from being a volunteer will serve as a toolkit in tackling challenges in life. Chamika continues to educate and encourage the young breed of volunteers and strives to create more opportunities for young volunteers to reach the highest level possible.